ABSTRACT

The study assessed the structure and determinants of land use intensity among arable farmers in per urban and rural areas of Abia State. The study examined the socioeconomic characteristics of the respondents, identified the land use structure among farmers, examined the conditions under whi€h land is used more intensely by the farmers and estimated the determinants of land use intensity among farmers in the study area. A well-structured questionnaire was used to collect data from 120 respondents (40 rural farmers, 80 pen-urban farmers).Multistage Random sampling Technique was used to select the respondents for the study. Descriptive statistics such as Mean, percentages, frequency and a multiple regression model were used to analyze the data. The result of the socioeconomic analysis showed that the mean age, household size, farming experience and farm size of the respondents were 54 years 8, 6 years and 2 ha respectively. Most of the. respondents in the study area are engaged in continuous cropping characterized b 7high cropping intensity. Land is intensely used among the farmers in the study area mainly due to high cost of land. Age, educational level, farm size, fertilizer intensity, agro-chemical Intensity and household size were the significant variables and are the determinants of land-use intensity in the study area. Age, educational level, fertilizer intensity, agro-chemical intensity and household size were directly related to land use intensity while farm size was inversely related to land-use intensity. It is recommended that farmers should be properly educated by the extension agents on the use of improve inputs such as improved seeds, herbicides and fertilizer since high use of these inputs affect the soil negatively. Mixed cropping is also recommended as it enhances productivity and maintains soil fertility. This would ensure stability of output and income.